This surgical
instrument, made of brass, appears to be a rather crude forceps of
the non-locking type. The date and place of its origin cannot be
definitely ascertained. The well-known treatise on surgery and
surgical instruments, Kitab-al Tasreef of Al-Zahrawi
of the Abbaside period, preserved at the library, contains sketches
of various surgical instruments but this figure does not match with
any of those images. This suggests that it had a later origin. It
was possibly used as a forceps in cases of surgical treatment. It
may also have been used for gynaecological surgery.